How to get the best out of your Interpreter at a Live Event

One of my favourite jobs this year was interpreting a live session at the FT’s Business of Football Summit.

Aurelio De Laurentiis, a veteran movie producer who has transformed the fortunes of the football club SSC Napoli since he saved it from bankruptcy in 2004, was interviewed on stage in Italian by an FT journalist.

The audience listened on headphones as I interpreted the hour-long conversation from a sound-proofed booth at the back of the room.

 As with most live events, the interpretation was simultaneous, which meant that I was listening to the speakers, analysing what they were saying and then reproducing their words in English, all in real-time.

Even with 25 years of experience, it’s always a cognitively demanding process.

So it’s a huge help when an event is well-organised - and this certainly was. Given the FT’s global readership, the events team and their contractors frequently need to hire interpreters, so they know precisely how to get the best out of us.

The experience inspired me to share some quick tips for Cambridge Wireless readers who might be organising a conference or live event with multi-lingual guests or speakers.

1)   Book interpreters early in the planning process 

Event producers sometimes wait until the last minute to hire an interpreter, making it tricky to secure the best interpreters, as our diaries fill up quickly. Lining up an interpreter early also means we can advise you on technical issues and help ensure everything runs smoothly.

 2)   Supply background material and questions in advance but remember that an experienced interpreter can handle spontaneous discussion.

The FT gave me questions for the De Laurentiis interview, but only a few were used - he spoke entirely off-the-cuff, which certainly kept me on my toes!

 3)   Allow ample time for the interpreter to meet the speaker before the session.

This enables us to understand their personality and speaking style so we can produce a more nuanced performance.

 4)   Provide a quiet spot where the interpreter can hang out before the session. 

My pre-session meeting with Aurelio De Laurentiis was beneficial, but after two hours of talking, I was grateful to slip away for a moment of calm and gather my thoughts before the session.

One Stop Language Solutions can provide [professional interpreting for live events in more than 150 languages https://www.onestoplanguagesolutions.com/languages/. We also offer a full consultancy service to help you organise and run a multilingual event   https://www.onestoplanguagesolutions.com/consultancy-services/.